Apparatus for stacking cards



July 2, 1957 J. c. DAVY ET AL APPARATUS FOR STACKING CARDS 2Sheets-Sheet l Filed May 4, 1956 July 2, 1957 J. c. DAVY ET AL APPARATUSFOR STACKING CARDS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 4, 1956 2! lnventorfi Jam)Cam Y &'

Unite Stats APPARATUS FOR STACKING CARDS John Colin Davy, Woldingham,and Maurice John Coote, Pen e, London, England, assignors toPowers-Saunas Accounting Machines Limited, London, England, a Britishcompany This inventon relates to apparatus for stacking cards in areceiver as they issue one at a time from a machine.

Data is sometimes recorded on sales tags from which it is to bereproduced on record cards for use in statistical machines such, forexample, as tabulators. The sales tags are, in effect record .cards inminiature, but they are often of different lengths thus necessitatingthe provision therein of a locating hole or holes relative to which thedata is recorded and by which they can be located for passage through areproducing machine or other machine. It will be understood thatalthough the tags are of different lengths they must all be orientatedrelative to their locating holes prior to a pile thereof being insertedinto the reproducing machine and it is sometimes required to feed thecards a number of times in the same order. If, therefore, the cards are,as is customary, delivered from the reproducing machine into the top ofa card receiver it is not only necessary to re-orientate the tags priorto their re-insertion into the reproducing machine, but it is notpossible to maintain the relative disposition of the tags with relationto the locating holes therein when the tags are of different lengths. Itis a main object of the present invention to provide a card stackingapparatus whereby cards of different lengths issuing from a machine maybe so stacked in a receiver that they will be properly orientatedtherein relative to their locating holes and in a manner such that onremoval of the stack from the receiver, the stack can be re-introducedinto a reproducing or other machine so that the cards will be fed to themachine from the stack in the same order as that in which they weredelivered to the receiver.

According to the present invention card-stacking apparatus comprises areceiver provided at the bottom thereof with latches spring-urgedtowards each other to retain cardsin the receiver, and a card-reversingdevice to receive a card with one side thereof facing upwards, to locatethe card relative to a locating hole therein, and to turn the card overwhile moving it from the position at which it is received by thereversing device and between said latches into the receiver forretention therein by the latches in a position such that the locatinghole thereof is aligned with the locating holes of the other cardssupported in the receiver.

Inorder that the invention may be clearly understood,

.one embodiment thereof will now be described, by way of example, withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is atop plan of apparatus according to the inven- .tion;

2,797,920 Patented July 2, 1957 by which data is sensed therefrom andtransmitted to a reproducing machine so that data recorded on the tag bysmall'data-indicating perforations, not shown, can, in known manner, bereproduced in a statistical record card of normal size. The length ofthe tags may vary, but as the tags are all orientated relative to theholes TH therein the tags will be correctly presented for sensing.

The tags as they issue from the sensing apparatus are i moved in thedirection indicated by the arrow A, Fig. 3, movement of. the tags beingeffected by any suitable means as for example by a feeding device 1diagrammaticallyillustrated in Fig. 3.

As the tag issues from the machine it is moved by the .feeding device 1beneath a plate 2, the plate being located above and parallel to thepath in which the card is moved by device 1 towards a receiver andsupported by a pair of support arms 3, 4, Figs. 1 and 2, which arefreely pivoted .on a shaft 5 rockable in the side frames 100, 101 of themachine. The rocking shaft 5 has secured thereto a pinion. 6, Figs. 1and 2, which meshes with a rockable sector, not shown, arranged toeffect rocking movement of the rocking shaft 5. As the tag is fedbeneath the plate 2, the leading edge of the tag is engaged by stop pins7 projecting from the underside of the plate, it being understood thatat this time the tag has one side thereof facing upwards. As the tag ismoved beneath plate 2 it is moved over a card-retaining member shown asan arm 8 which at this time is in the position thereof shown in Fig. l.The card-retaining arm 8 is secured to a spindle 9 which pivots in abush 10, Fig. 3, carried by the support arm 4 and permits movement ofthe arms relative to the plate 7, in a plane parallel to that of theplate. The tag is accordingly arrested by the stop pins 7 and supportedbetween the plate 2 and card-retaining arm 8 in the position in which ithas been fed through the reproducing machine.

, The plate 2 is provided with apertures which are aligned with thelocating holes TH when the tag is located against the pins7, and whenthe tag is located against the pins '7, locating elements, shown as pins11 are moved downwards, as viewed in Fig. 3, through the apertures inplate 2 and the locating holes TH in the tag. The locating pins 11 arecarried at the end of a driving arm 12 secured to the rocking shaft 5for rocking movement therewith. Just after the tag has been locatedagainst the stop pins 7, the rocking shaft 5 is moved clockwise, asviewed in Fig. 3, so that the driving arm 12 is moved downwards and intoengagement with plate 2, the locating pins 11 during this movement beingpassed through the locating holes TH in the tag. When the driving arm 12engages the plate 2, the plate, tag, and card-retaining arm are causedto move therewith in an arcuate path about the axis of shaft 5. Until itis engaged by the driving arm 12 on downward movement thereof the plate.2 is retained in the position shown in Fig. 3 by a spring 13 anchored atone end to the plate and atthe other end to a post 14 carried by thedriving arm 12, the plate 2 being arrested in the position shown inFig.3 by stops 15 carried by a bar 115 secured in any suitable manner as byscrews, not shown, to the tops of frames 160, 101.

Continued movement of the driving arm 12 moves plate 2 andcard-retaining arm 8, together with the tag T retained therebetween, ina clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 3, the location of the parts atthis time being as illustrated in Fig. 4. When the plate 2 reaches theposition at which it is disposed substantially vertically below the axisof the rocking shaft 5, a cam follower 16 carried by a toothed rack 17is moved by cooperation with a stationary cam 18 thereby to effectlengthwise movement of the toothed rack 17, which, as can be seenfromFig. 1, is provided with slots 19 coacting with shouldered screws 20secured to the arm 4. The toothed rack 17 is slidable lengthwiserelative to the arm 4 and the teeth on the rack mesh with a pinion 21secured to the spindle 9. Accordingly, on lengthwise movement of therack, downwards as viewed in Fig. 1, the card-retaining arm 8 is movedclockwise, as viewed in Fig. 1 to its final position in which it issubstantially parallel to shaft 5. The retaining arm 8 reaches theposition shown in Fig. 6 when the tag-reversing device reachesapproximately the position illustrated in Fig. 5. Further movement ofthe tag-reversing device causes the tag to be moved by the plate 2 be:tween latches 22 and 23 which are urged towards each other by springs24, 25. The latches 22 are freely pivoted on a spindle 122 supported bya block 222 secured to the front wall 29 of the receiver and each latch22 has a laterally extending pin 124 which is engaged by the free end ofa spring 24, the fixed ends of the springs being clamped between theblock 222 and the front wall 29 of the receiver. The latches 23 arefreely pivoted on a spindle 123 supported by a block 223 which ismounted on a bar 323 secured to the ends of frames 100, 161, and eachlatch 23 has a laterally extending pin 125 which is engaged by the freeend of a spring 25, the fixed ends of the springs 25 being clampedbetween the block 223 and the bar 323. The move ment of the tag andplate between the latches urges the latches outwards away from eachother, as viewed in Figs. 3 and 7, until the tag has been moved slightlybeyond the latch faces 26, 27, when the latches, under the action oftheir springs 24, 25 are restored to the normal positions thereof andare located in slots 28 formed in the plate 2. The rocking shaft nowcommences to return the tag-reversing apparatus so that the driving arm12 is moved in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 7, thuswithdrawing the locating pins 11 from the locating holes TH in the tag.follows the driving arm 12 under the action of the spring 13, and thetag accordingly remains supported by the latches 22, 23 in the receiverwhich consists of the front and rear walls 29, 30 and an end wall 31,which is secured to the frame 1111. The walls 29, 30 have curved lowerends 229, 230 which act as guards during movement of the plate 2 andparts movable therewith into and out of co-operation with the receiver.The fact that the locating pins have located the tag from the time thatthe tag is received by the reversing apparatus until it is releasedthereby in the card receiver, ensures that, irrespective of the lengthsof the tags, all of the locating holes in the tags stacked in thereceiver will be aligned with each other and as the tags stacked in thereceiver are disposed with the sides thereof which were engaged by theplate 2 facing downwards, the stack can be removed from the receiver,inverted, and placed into a magazine so that the tags can be fed fromthe magazine in the order and side uppermost in which they weredelivered to the card-reversing device.

As the card-reversing device returns to the starting position thereofillustrated in Fig. 3 the toothed rack 17 is again moved lengthwise toreturn the card-re taining arm 8 to the position thereof shown in Fig. 1and when the plate 2 reaches the position thereof shown in Fig. 3 it isarrested by the stops 15, although the The plate 2 driving arm 12continues to move counterclockwise for a distance suflicient to ensurethat the locating pins 11 are raised, as shown in Fig. 3, to a positionat which the free ends of the pins do not protrude through the plate 2to impede the passage of the next tag between the plate and theretaining arm 8. This continued movement of the driving arm 12, afterarrest of plate 2 by stops 15, causes extension of the spring 13.

We claim:

1. Card-stacking apparatus comprising a receiver, latches located at thebottom of the receiver and spring-urged towards each other to retaincards in the receiver, a card-reversing device movable in an arcuatepath to and from a card receiving position thereof in which it receivesa card with one side thereof facing upwards, at least one locatingelement movable relative to said device to permit a card to be receivedby said device and to engage in a locating hole formed in the card, saidlocating element being also movable with said device after locationthereby of a card relative to said device thereby to retain the card inthe located position thereof during movement of the card by said device,and means movable relative to said device to effect movement of thelocating element relative to the device and with the device to effectmovement thereof in said arcuate path from the card receiving positionthereby to turn over the located card and to move it between saidlatches for retention thereby in the receiver with said one side of thelocated card facing downwards and the locating hole therein aligned withthe locating holes of the other cards supported in the receiver.

2. Card-stacking apparatus comprising a receiver, latches located at thebottom of the receiver and springurged towards each other to retaincards in the receiver, a rocking shaft, a plate freely pivoted on saidshaft normally to be located above and parallel to the path in which acard is moved towards the receiver, a card-retaining member movable withand relative to said plate to retain a card in located position againstthe plate for movement thereby into the receiver, a driving arm securedto said shaft for movement therewith and for movement with and relativeto said plate, at least one locating element carried by said driving armand arranged by movement of the arm relative to the plate to permit acard to be received between the plate and card-retaining member and toengage in a locating hole formed in the card thereby to locate the cardrelative to the plate and retain it in said located position duringmovement of the card by the plate into the receiver, and means to effectrocking of said shaft to effect movement of the plate in an arcuate pathto and from the card receiving position thereof, the movement of theplate from its card receiving position causing the located card to beturned over and moved between said latches for retention thereby in thereceiver.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the cardretaining membercomprises a retaining arm supported by said plate for pivotal movementrelative thereto in a plane parallel therewith, and including a pinionconnected with the retaining arm to effect pivotal movement thereof, atoothed rack meshing with said pinion and supported for movement with alengthwise movement relative to said plate, and a stationary camco-operating with said rack thereby to cause pivoted movement of theretaining arm to and from the card retaining position thereof.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the retaining arm is shapedpartly to embrace a locating element when both the retaining arm and thelocating element are in the active positions thereof.

No references cited.

